With the doors closed on day one of the Paris Air Show, it’s time to take a brief look at some of the headlines of Day One.
Airbus
Airbus kicked off the show with the formal launch of the Airbus A321XLR.
The A321XLR adds more range to the A320 family, with Airbus offer up to 4,700nm – 15% more than the A321LR. Some routes are shown on the infographics below.
According to Airbus, the changes are simple ones:
The changes include: the new permanent Rear Centre Tank (RCT) for more fuel volume; a modified landing gear for an increased maximum take-off weight (MTOW) of 101 metric tonnes; and an optimised wing trailing-edge flap configuration to preserve the same take-off performance and engine thrust requirements as today’s A321neo. In particular, the new optimised RCT holds more fuel than several optional Additional Centre Tanks (ACTs) did previously, while taking up less space in the cargo hold – thus freeing-up underfloor volume for additional cargo and baggage on long range routes.
And of course, there are orders to kick it off with Air Lease Corp starting the party. The company has signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) for 100 Airbus aircraft split down
- 50 A220-300s
- 27 A321XLRs.
- Additional 23 A321neos.
Air Lease Corp Airbus A321XLR – Image, Airbus.
It’ll be the first tie Air Lease Corp have opted for the A220 family, and takes ALC’s cumulative orders to 387 Airbus aircraft – making it Airbus’ third largest lessor customer.
Middle East Airlines have also opted for the type, taking four of them (and thus the first airline launch customer).
Onto wider bodies, with Virgin Atlantic taking the Airbus A330neo – in the form of the A330-900neo
The airline will take 14 A330-900s to replace its A330ceos from 2021, with options to further expand its fleet of highly efficient wide-body aircraft. The firm order for eight aircraft and six additional on lease from Air Lease Corporation.
Boeing
If Boeing’s press conference is anything to go by, this won’t be a show to remember for them. There’s no formal launch of the Boeing NMA (New Middle Aircraft) this show (with , with the airframer concentrating on Boeing 777X and the Boeing 737 MAX.
In terms of orders GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS) signed an agreement with Boeing exercising 10 purchase rights to firm orders and adding 15 more purchase rights for the 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighter (BCF)
Embraer
Embraer kicked off their show with a follow-on order from United Airlines for up to 39 E175s. The order comprises 20 firm aircraft and 19 options in a 70-seat configuration.
Azul Linhas Aereas Brasileiras, signed a a long-term Flight Hour Pool Program agreement to provide repairable component support for the carrier’s brand new fleet of Embraer E195-E2 jets, The multiyear Flight Hour Pool Program agreement includes material services engineering and advanced component exchanges from Embraer spare parts facilities in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, USA.
A quiet show so far…
And with that, day two of the Paris Air Show will be upon us quickly. What is striking is that the lack of deals being announced so far – with a backdrop of trade tensions and uncertain outlooks – so far, lessors and airlines are keeping their hands in their pockets… for now.
We’ll be back tomorrow with more coverage
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